Liam Payne, former One Direction member, dies after hotel balcony fall

Liam Payne, once a member of One Direction, has passed away after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, according to local authorities. Payne, who was 31, leaves behind his 7-year-old son, Bear.

Police found Payne’s body after responding to a call from hotel staff where the singer was staying in the popular Palermo area of the city.

Payne became famous worldwide as part of One Direction, a boyband formed on the British X Factor in 2010. The group, which included Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Zayn Malik, announced a break in 2016.

Hotel staff asked for police help shortly before Payne’s death on Wednesday, according to an emergency call obtained by CNN’s Argentine affiliate, Todo Noticias.

“We have a guest overwhelmed by drugs and alcohol,” the hotel manager said on the call. “He’s breaking things, tearing the room apart.”

The manager also said that since Payne’s room had a balcony, “we’re worried he might do something.”

Earlier this month, Payne was seen in Argentina attending a concert by his former bandmate, Niall Horan.

CNN reached out to Payne’s representatives and his former One Direction bandmates for comments.

A quick rise to fame

Payne first impressed British viewers as a 14-year-old during his 2008 X Factor audition, singing “Fly Me to the Moon” by Frank Sinatra.

“I should focus on my [school] work, but I think too much about singing,” he said before his audition. Payne, who was from Wolverhampton in the English Midlands near Birmingham, spoke with a strong “Brummie” accent that faded as his career advanced.

Judge Simon Cowell cut Payne before the live shows, telling him to return in two years after focusing on his studies.

In 2010, Payne, now 16, came back for another audition. Later, judge Nicole Scherzinger teamed him up with Styles, Tomlinson, Horan, and Malik to form One Direction. The group finished third in the competition and signed with Cowell’s label, starting a global tour the following year, selling out many of their 54 shows worldwide.

One Direction remains one of the top-selling boybands in history, with over 70 million records sold globally.

All five members pursued solo careers after the group’s 2016 break.

‘It became toxic’

Fame took a toll on Payne, who often spoke about his struggles with substance abuse and mental health.

“When you do hundreds of [shows] and it’s the same 22 songs every day, even when you’re unhappy, you still have to go on stage,” Payne told Men’s Health Australia in 2019. He admitted to drinking before performing to handle the stress.

“It’s like wearing a Disney costume before stepping on stage, and underneath it, I was often drunk because it was the only way to handle everything,” he said. “It was fun, but there were times when it just got too toxic.”

In another 2019 interview with Sky News, Payne said he felt “lucky to still be here,” something he hadn’t shared before.

Payne released his solo album “LP1” in 2019 and said in 2023 that he was working on a second album. In March 2023, he released the single “Teardrops,” which he described as “born from many tears, some mine, some not.”

In summer 2023, Payne marked six months of sobriety after completing treatment in a US facility. His South American tour, set for September of that year, was postponed after he suffered a kidney infection.

Fans and stars pay tribute

Payne’s death shocked fans and the music industry, with tributes pouring in from all over the world. The news was on most UK newspapers’ front pages Thursday.

On Instagram, Harry Styles’ mother, Anne Twist, shared a broken heart emoji with the caption, “Just a boy.”

Another tribute came from former X Factor host Dermot O’Leary, who said: “I remember him as a 14-year-old at his X Factor audition, blowing us away singing Sinatra. He just loved to sing. Always a joy, polite, humble, and had time for everyone.”

A vigil was also held outside the Buenos Aires hotel.

Yamila Zacarias, a 25-year-old fan, said One Direction “meant a lot to me because I was at a point [in my life] where I wanted to be part of something bigger. Being a Directioner was that for me.”

Behind her, grieving fans lit candles and sang One Direction’s song “Infinity.”

Payne is survived by his son Bear, whom he had with ex-Girls Aloud member Cheryl Tweedy. Tweedy, a former X Factor judge, was present for both of Payne’s X Factor auditions. The couple split in 2018 but continued to co-parent.

In a 2023 YouTube video, Payne spoke about the love he had for Bear.

“He’s great. He’s growing up too fast,” Payne said. “He’s much smarter than I’ll ever be. He’s amazing.”